Western Wireless Corp. appointed Jay Florentine general manager for its Hawaii market. He will be responsible for 70 employees, four company-owned retail stores and 60 other retail stores on the Hawaiian Islands that carry VoiceStream Wireless products. Florentine most recently was the regional sales manager for PrimeCo Personal Communications L.P. in north Florida, where he was involved with launching the company’s largest personal communications services market. Florentine has 17 years of experience in the wireless industry, holding a variety of sales and management positions with companies including Circuit City and Bell Atlantic Mobile Systems.
Call Sciences has named John F. Scheifele vice president of marketing. In this position, Scheifele will be responsible for creating and implementing corporate marketing strategies and developing Call Sciences’ market share and brand identity. Scheifele has 19 years of experience in the telecom industry in sales, marketing and strategic planning. He joined Call Sciences after four years at Telecommunications Research Associates of Dublin, Calif., where he was division vice president.
21st Century Telesis, a Calif.-based personal communications services provider, named James A. LaBelle its chief operating officer. LaBelle will be responsible for the company’s network construction, operation and maintenance, as well as sales, marketing and customer service operations. LaBelle previously served as president of the Midwestern region for GTE Wireless.
NPI Wireless appointed Ty Finch its new systems administrator. Finch will be responsible for implementing and maintaining the company’s personal communications services network in northern Michigan. Prior to joining NPI, Finch was a controller and systems and technology manager for Cellular Masters of America. NPI is a division of Noverr Publishing Inc., which was awarded the PCS license for the 13 counties in the Traverse City and Petoskey basic trading areas earlier this year.
The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association named Eileen Duff director for external and industry relations. She will be responsible for health and product issues, such as electromagnetic compatibility and antenna safety. Duff was the confidential assistant to former Federal Communications Commissioner Rachelle Chong. Duff gained experience in the wireless industry while employed with McCaw Cellular Communications Inc. as a regulatory analyst, where she helped develop McCaw’s cell siting and tariff procedures.
